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Mr. Ping
|gender= Male |image= |films= Kung Fu Panda Kung Fu Panda 2 |shorts= Kung Fu Panda Holiday |television= Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness |games= Kung Fu Panda: The Game Kung Fu Panda 2: The Game |voice= James Hong on IMDb.com |appearance= White feathers |fate= Runs the most popular noodle shop in the Valley of Peace (general) Helped Po realize the secret to the Dragon Scroll (Kung Fu Panda) Prepared and celebrated the holidays with his son (Kung Fu Panda Holiday) Reunited with his son after Po had discovered his true origins (Kung Fu Panda 2) |quote= "We are noodle folk — broth runs deep through our veins." }} Mr. Ping is one of the supporting protagonists in the ''Kung Fu Panda'' series. He is Po's adoptive father, who runs the most popular noodle shop in the Valley of Peace. He considers his work deeply fulfilling, and hopes that his son will continue to operate the shop. Biography Beginnings Little is known about Mr. Ping's early life. What is known is that he was born to his father, the noodle-maker and owner of the Noodle Shop. It is assumed that as Mr. Ping grew older, he eventually received the "Noodle Dream" and told his father about it, who then knew it was time to tell him the "secret ingredient" of the noodle soup and have him take over the shop. He did so, and as time passed, Mr. Ping eventually inherited the noodle shop from his father (presumably from his passing). ]] One day, while gathering the new shipment of vegetables he had ordered, Mr. Ping found a baby panda in one of the shipment's radish crates. Surprised, he looked around and waited for someone to come find the infant. When no one came, he turned to bring in the cabbages, but hearing the child cry, he decided to keep the child until someone came looking for him. Quickly finding out that the infant was too big and heavy to carry in, he led him inside with a trail of dumplings. He bathed him, fed him, nurtured him and grew to love him until he came to realize that no one was coming for the child. He then made two life-altering decisions: he would never use radishes in his noodle soup, and he would raise the child as his own son. Mr. Ping then named the baby panda "XiaoUsed as an adjective that means "little" ( : 小; : xiǎo) Po" (小宝). and a younger Mr. Ping]] Since then, Mr. Ping had raised Po in the noodle shop, teaching him all he knew as a noodle-maker and aspired that one day, his adopted son would take over the restaurant just as he did from his own father. It never bothered him when Po broke a plate or messed up an order, because to him, his son was a hero.Scholastic.com - "Kung Fu Panda-monium!" by Marie Morreale Until the events in the second film, neither he nor Po ever brought up how different they were from each other, because despite their physical differences, both father and son share a deep mutual love and respect. This shows mainly in the first film in how Po cannot bear to disappoint his father about his differing ambitions, while Mr. Ping eventually comes to respect his son's decisions enough to neither protest nor interfere after the panda is dubbed the Dragon Warrior. In Kung Fu Panda in the shop's kitchen]] One morning, Po was late getting up for work and made a series of noises in his room. When he finally came downstairs, Mr. Ping asked his son as to what was happening. Po claimed that he was having a dream about noodles. This excited Mr. Ping, believing that Po finally had the "Noodle Dream", a clear sign that he would eventually take over the restaurant. Po unenthusiastically put it down as "no big deal" and asked his father if he ever wanted to do anything else besides make noodles. Mr. Ping admitted that when he was "young and crazy", he dreamed of running away to make tofu, but gave up on it because it was a "stupid dream". to get back to work]] That same day, a tournament was announced across the Valley of Peace to be held the Jade Palace, where Grand Master Oogway would choose the Dragon Warrior. As Po urged all of the restaurant's patrons to go watch, Mr. Ping saw the event as a great opportunity to sell noodles. Knowing that everyone in the Valley would be there, he gave Po the noodle cart. But some time later, Mr. Ping discovered that Po had abandoned the noodle cart at the bottom of the stairs and found him seated in a chair with lit fireworks tied to it. He attempted to stop his son from performing such a dangerous stunt, but Po insisted that he wanted to see the Dragon Warrior. Mr. Ping was confused and reminded him that he just had the Noodle Dream, but Po confessed that he lied. As the rockets were about to ignite, Po exclaimed, "I love Kung Fu!" However, the rockets failed to go off and he fell down, depressed and miserable. Though sympathetic, Mr. Ping handed Po his apron and suggested that they get back to work. Then suddenly the rockets went off, launching Po high into the sky before he fell down into the arena. Mr. Ping managed to enter the arena just in time to see Oogway select Po as the Dragon Warrior, much to his astonishment. the "secret ingredient" to his soup]] A few days later, as the Valley was being evacuated in response to the return of Tai Lung, Mr. Ping packed up his restaurant to restart elsewhere, deciding that diced vegetables would be his new trend. To his joy, Po returned as well, with the Dragon Scroll in hand. Mr. Ping noticed how depressed his son was and tried comforting him with talk of noodles again. Po replied by saying that sometimes he couldn't believe he was actually his son. Surprised at this, Mr. Ping then decided to reveal the secret ingredient to his secret ingredient soup: "nothing". He didn't need to add anything to plain, ordinary noodle soup — he only needed people to believe that it was special. Po then opened the scroll, looked at its blank, reflective surface, and realized that there was no secret ingredient to the mastery of Kung Fu. His father's advice gave him the courage to go back to the Jade Palace and confront Tai Lung. ]] At Po's triumph over Tai Lung, all of Mr. Ping's doubts of his son's destiny vanished as he proclaimed his pride in Po to the entire Valley as they embraced. Furthermore, the end credit graphics indicate that Po kept close in touch with his father to the point of temporarily assuming the restaurant's cooking on occasion while Ping established a friendship with the panda's other father figure and master, Shifu. and was seen outwitting Shifu in a match. In Kung Fu Panda Holiday in the "Noodle Dream"]] The special opened up with Mr. Ping having his cherished "Noodle Dream", in which he and his son Po made an incredibly delicious noodle soup and served it to a rabbit customer. But suddenly, it turned into a "Noodle Nightmare" with the appearance of an incredibly large version of Tai Lung. Po defeated the snow leopard once again, but left his father, declaring that neither he, nor evil, takes a holiday. As he pleaded his son not to go, Mr. Ping's oven came alive and snatched at him like a frog. This moment of shock caused Mr. Ping to wake up, crying out in anguish. Po, bursting into his room, assured his dad that it was only a dream and that he wasn't going anywhere. speaking to Po about the Jade Palace's holiday preparations]] Afterwards, that same morning, Po and his father went downstairs, and Po came across the he made when he was a cub. Mr. Ping said that he opened the box the previous summer just to look at it. Then Master Shifu came into the restaurant to say good morning and assign Po to host the annual Winter Feast celebration at the Jade Palace, which is a highly ritualized formal occasion exclusively for the masters of Kung Fu. Mr. Ping became depressed when Po quickly forgot about their holiday traditions, before Po then rushed off to help the Furious Five defeat a group of boar bandits. presenting to his father the Golden Ladle]] When Po learned that he couldn't invite his own father to the feast, he figured that he could hire him as the feast's chef, thus solving his dilemma. Even though Po presented his father the opportunity to cater the feast with the Golden Ladle, Mr. Ping was adamant that he must stay at his restaurant for the lonely people who have nowhere else to eat for the holiday (and who also pay extra). cooking holiday noodle soup]] Mr. Ping had continued preparing for the Feast at the shop all by himself, struggling to do so with all the various things to accomplish. But later on the night of the feast, Po had returned to the shop to help his father. Once together, Mr. Ping apologized for being unfair to Po about his larger responsibilities and they prepared their food with polished skill to make the informal dinner a success from the start. Soon, the Furious Five and all the visiting masters, moved by Po's loyalty, arrived to participate in the festivities with the townsfolk. In Art of Balance Mr. Ping is concerned when Po begins suffering from tiredness due to lack of balance between his Kung Fu duties and his job at the restaurant. During one busy day at the noodle shop, Mr. Ping is approached by an antelope named Kuo, who had just been hired by Po to work at the restaurant after expressing great interest in the job. While impressed by Kuo's skill in chopping vegetables, Mr. Ping refuses when the antelope inquires about one of his special recipes. While walking away, Mr. Ping does not notice Kuo glaring at his back. Mr. Ping later finds Kuo searching the shop for the recipes, and again refuses when he demands to know their location. Angered, Kuo threatens Mr. Ping with a knife, and soon after Po returns to find his father bound and held hostage. It is revealed that Kuo blames Mr. Ping's successful business for his own failures, and believes that the goose's recipes are the key to his own success. Po attempts to reason with Kuo, but the enraged antelope attacks, only to be beaten by Po's newly-acquired balancing skills. Po unties his father while Shifu stops Kuo from escaping, and Mr. Ping thanks his son for saving him. In Kung Fu Panda 2 After Po's success and fame as the Dragon Warrior, Mr. Ping continued to work at the noodle shop. But being proud of his son, he made a few changes to his business, marketing on Po's success by renaming the shop and creating a theme related to the Dragon Warrior, noodles, and . After Po had a flashback of his mother, he asked Mr. Ping where he came from. Trying to make an excuse, Mr. Ping said he came from an egg and insisted that Po "not ask him where the egg comes from." But once he noticed how Po saw through the excuse, he reluctantly admitted that Po was adopted. Mr. Ping continued to explain how he found him in an "empty" box of radishes outside the shop. After a while of waiting for someone to come, he eventually decided on two things: to make his soup without radishes, and to take him in as a son, commenting on how "both his soup and his life had been that much sweeter." However, Po was unsatisfied, wondering how he could've ended up in that box. Mr. Ping reminds him that though his story may not have such a happy beginning, he is currently living out a happy life now. and the Five depart from the Valley]] Mr. Ping later heard about Po's mission to travel with the Furious Five over to Gongmen City to stop Lord Shen's weapon, and had already packed Po's things by the time he arrived back at the shop. Mr. Ping made an effort to try and pack things that would remind him of their relationship; these included Po's favorite foods, his Furious Five action figures, and portrait paintings of moments he considered precious (much to Po's embarrassment and Monkey's amusement). This was all done out of Mr. Ping's own worries, hoping that if Po indeed found where he came from, he would still find it in his heart to return. Still feeling that sense of worry that this might be an adventure his son may never return from, he tried pleading Po not to leave, but Po insisted that he discover where he came from and fulfill his duty as the Dragon warrior. As Po takes his traveling pack, Tigress assures Mr. Ping that Po will return, and Mr. Ping stood in the middle of the village road and sadly watched as Po and the Five departed. At the end of the film, Mr. Ping was seen dealing with a pig mother and her son, who insisted that they see the Dragon Warrior for the child's birthday. Mr. Ping politely apologized as he told them Po wasn't present because of the mission that he and the Furious Five were given to save Gongmen City and China, but the pig's son is still not happy. The mother unwillingly suggested they returned some other time to see him, but a worried Mr. Ping, terrified and upset for the well-being of his only son, finally broke down in tears and answered that he doesn't know if Po will be returning or not. But just a moment later, Po appeared at the shop's entrance with a crate of radishes under each arm, much to the delight of Mr. Ping and the customes. He then asked him if he saved China, to which Po confirmed and additionally added how he also discovered where he came from. Mr. Ping, worried that Po might consider leaving again, panicked, until Po then declared that he was his father. Relieved that Po still accepted him as a father, both father and son share a hug in acceptance of one another. Mr. Ping then offered to cook for Po, but Po offered to cook as well as his way of thanking his father for raising him. But Mr. Ping insisted on cooking and he happily walked into the kitchen with his son. In Legends of Awesomeness Megan Casey, the executive in charge of production at , described Mr. Ping as warm, sweet, and incredibly funny all at the same time. "You never know what might come out of his mouth," Casey states. "Probably noodles." Personality There are three things in his life that Mr. Ping loves over anything else: his son, noodles, and tofu. He is usually happy, humble, and takes pride in his business running the Noodle Shop. In the first film, he is delighted by the prospect of Po being next in the family tradition to own the restaurant after him, though fails to notice Po's obvious lack of enthusiasm to do so. Even though Po chooses to pursue Kung Fu, Mr. Ping is still very proud of him and comes to accept his son's destiny as the Dragon Warrior. He enjoys the Winter Festival holiday in Kung Fu Panda Holiday, celebrating by cooking and hanging decorations, being particularly fond of a Po made when he was a cub. Even though Po continues to work at the Noodle Shop, Mr. Ping may worry about Po leaving him some day, as seen in his nightmare. In the special, he also shows compassion for others when he turns down the high honor of preparing a feast at the Jade Palace so that he can cook for the neighborhood and give any lonely people a place to stay. It is also partly because of his sympathy that Po was inspired to believe in himself and understand the symbolic meaning of the Dragon Scroll, as Mr. Ping offered him the secret ingredient to the restaurant's soup, which was nothing but one's own belief in it being special. Since the events of the first film, Mr. Ping may have lost his best (and only) employee to Kung Fu greatness, but he couldn't be more proud of his panda son. In fact, Mr. Ping has decked out the noodle shop in honor of Po's epic exploits. But like any parent left at home, Dad worries about being forgotten. Therefore he makes sure to always have extra helpings of bean buns ready to feed the Dragon Warrior whenever he stops by.Kung Fu Panda Official Site - Mr. Ping Mr. Ping has also been known to be persistent with money since the events of the first film. This was shown in Kung Fu Panda Holiday when Mr. Ping explains to Po that he can't leave the restaurant because the lonely people need a place to call home for the holidays (and also charge them extra for it). Similarly, in Kung Fu Panda 2, he offers "free" tofu dessert for his customers, but only with purchases. Abilities Although Mr. Ping doesn't fight, he makes a mean noodle soup. He comes from a long line of noodle makers; Po and noodles are all that he cares about. Although, once Po became the Dragon Warrior and Mr. Ping changed the name of his restaurant to capitalize on Po's fame, he also began fulfilling his own dreams. Mr. Ping mentioned in the first film that he thought of running away when he was younger to learn how to make , but didn't because it was "just a stupid dream." Because of Po's success in his dream, he has now begun selling tofu in his shop, thus fulfilling a dream he always had. In the Kung Fu Panda credits, Mr. Ping is shown to be incredibly skilled at , beating even Master Shifu. In Kung Fu Panda Holiday, Mr. Ping uses techniques similar to Kung Fu when creating noodle soup. This helped him to make the noodles much faster than before. Relationships Family His father Coming soon! Po greeting Mr. Ping in Kung Fu Panda 2]] As his adoptive father, Mr. Ping loves Po more than he loves his noodles. Even though he is a little old-fashioned and maybe a bit naive to his son's wishes and adult responsibilities, he does love his son dearly and would do anything to make him happy. He gave Po his posters, swinging stars and action figures out of love and encouragement that his son could lead a normal and happy life. Mr. Ping's biggest fear is that someday Po will someday no longer need him and leave. However, Po is a loving son who treasures his dad too dearly to leave him. This led to some friction with Po being pointed Host of the Winter Festival and Mr. Ping declined his son's offer to have him cater it in favor of his own profitable event at the Noddle Shop on the same night. As it turns out, both found their separate commitments dispiriting struggles, but Po returned to the shop mid-through the feast with the Masters out of loyalty to his father where Mr. Ping apologizes for being unfair to his son and his obligations as the Dragon Warrior. With his son's help, the shop's event is a rousing success that draws all the Masters to join them. Afterward, Po moves to the Jade Palace barracks satisfied that his father is at peace with his calling. This relationship was tested in the second film, when Po finally found out the truth about his origins. However, as he remembered the good times he had with Mr. Ping, he realized how much his dad loves him despite their differences and a difficult undertaking. Upon his return to the Valley, Po returns to his dad's noodle shop and lovingly acknowledges his importance and love to him. Others Master Shifu With his son's responsibilities as Dragon Warrior, Mr. Ping has developed a friendship with Master Shifu. However, the relationship does have occasional friction such as with Shifu's habit of imperiously calling away Po for his own matters. The Furious Five Coming soon! Clothing/Outfit Mr. Ping wears a simple red robe with light yellow lining, and a gold-colored belt with wave designs on it (though this was replaced by white lining and a black belt in Kung Fu Panda Holiday to create a -esque image). He is usually seen donning a hat made to look like a bowl of noodles, seemingly made of fabric and balls of yarn, with a pair of chopsticks attached. He also wears bead-like rings on his ankles. In Kung Fu Panda 2, when Mr. Ping explains to Po about his adoption and flashes back to approximately thirty years ago, Mr. Ping is shown wearing a shiny purple overcoat paired with a long braid tied behind his head, all rather than his customary noodle shop robe and hat seen in the first film. Character designer Nicolas Marlet explained this look as a representation of Mr. Ping's "young and crazy days" when he discovered baby Po.Miller-Zarneke, Tracey. The Art of Kung Fu Panda II, p. 35. : Trivia * According to Kung Fu Panda Holiday, Mr. Ping has apparently not been inside the Jade Palace yet. * According to the filmmakers' commentary in the original Kung Fu Panda, Mr. Ping was originally going to be Po's strict boss. This was later changed. * From a behind-the-scenes featurette on the Kung Fu Panda DVD, the filmmakers also reveal that, when hearing about 's father having a noodle shop, they brought this to his character Mr. Ping. * Mr. Ping has been the only character, who has had the same voice actor (James Hong) throughout all the Kung Fu Panda franchise. * According to Master Ping, Mr. Ping has sinus problems. Gallery Images YoungMrPingConcept.JPG|Concept illustrations of young Mr. Ping by Nicolas Marlet Mr_ping.jpg|Mr. Ping chopping vegetables in Kung Fu Panda GroupHoliday.PNG|Mr. Ping with Po, Shifu, the Furious Five, and Wo Hop Photo-Kung-Fu-Panda-2-2010-30.jpg BabyPoBath.PNG|A younger Mr. Ping washing baby Po in a flashback from Kung Fu Panda 2 Mr-ping-loa.jpg|Mr. Ping in Legends of Awesomeness View more... Videos thumb|left|Commercial for Mr. Ping's [[Noodle Shop|restaurant as a promotional trailer for Kung Fu Panda 2]] View more... Quotes References Category:Characters Category:Film Characters Category:TV Series Characters Category:Video Game Characters Category:Males Category:Major Characters